


orders are orders

by justsomerain



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: F/M, Finn has Anxiety, First Order mention, Fluff, Loth-cats, Lothal, Picnics, Post-Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-14
Updated: 2016-05-14
Packaged: 2018-06-08 08:57:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6847999
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/justsomerain/pseuds/justsomerain
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Master Skywalker sends you somewhere, you go. Orders are orders. And if the place you're sent is Lothal, you go there.</p>
            </blockquote>





	orders are orders

**Author's Note:**

> For the FinnRey positivity prompts initiative, to take back the tag from reylos claiming Finn/Rey is dead. For the prompt "Someone is adopted by a space kitten."

Lothal hasn’t been important since before war against the Empire, but orders are orders, especially when they come from Master Skywalker. The only interesting thing about the planet was that it had been, at some point before the Battle of Yavin, the home of a Rebel cell.

Not particularly important in itself, as there had been more Rebel cells than there had been planets, just about, but Master Skywalker had been very particular about this cell, and that his student must do her best to find anything this “Spectre” group had left behind, with no word on why.

And so Rey had set out to Lothal, together with Finn and Chewbacca.

Chewie had declined leaving behind the Falcon, growling something Finn hadn’t entirely caught, and that Rey had helpfully translated as “he said he’d rather look after the motivator”, with a casual shrug.

Finn had known, of course, that there were planets that were less well off, and First Order propaganda had said that it would take care of those planets once they overthrew the corrupt Senate.

But to see it with his own eyes was something different, a planet even thirty years after the war where a large portion of the population lived in houses that were better described as shacks, and as they made their way he couldn’t help but reach for Rey’s hand.

Despite her initial dislike for it, she had gotten used to it with a speed that was frankly astonishing. She still didn’t like people she didn’t know well touching her, but Finn was fine, and the two of them had been practically attached at the hip since her return from Ahch-To.

There was something about holding Rey’s hand that calmed his jitters. Yes, he had been trained and everything, but there was something about missions like this that got his heart pumping at a rate that was uncomfortable, and his brain racing, thinking only of worst case scenarios.

“Are you okay?” The question came, as ever, Rey as aware of what he was feeling in the field as on the Resistance base, something that had surprised him at first, but really, it was to be expected. The Force after all worked in mysterious ways.

Finn nodded, squeezing Rey’s hand, eyes scanning the vast grasslands of Lothal as they reached the edge of the shanty town.

“Just…” He fell silent, still scanning the horizon, eyebrows drawn together.

“I know.”

Rey squeezed his hand in return, before moving forward in the direction he’d been looking.

“It’s this way,” and he couldn’t help but follow, a smile on his face at her certainty.

-

This way turned out to be a long, long walk. Not that he was complaining. He was used to worse. Marching drills were far worse, and really, even without the First Order’s supplements, it was not difficult, but there was just something about Lothal, a creeping feeling like something was following him.

He was sure it must have been at least two standard hours when Rey stopped, a large cone in the distance, half an hour’s walk further, if he was any judge.

“That’s it. I’m sure.”

She squeezed his hand before dropping it, lowering herself into a sitting position, reaching out for the pack Finn had been carrying. (Which he had meticulously packed, he was prepared for anything.) 

Finn slung the pack off his back, sitting across from Rey, knees almost touching hers, before opening the top flap. He had packed the bag, and while the med kit at the bottom was important, what was more important in that moment were the sandwiches.

Sure, he was no great cook, but he liked to think that at least sandwiches were something he had mastered. Even Poe liked them, and out of the three of them he had been the one who had been raised on actual food, instead of tasteless rations, so that had to count for something.

“You know, on holovids they’ve got blankets when eating outside.”

When he looked at Rey, she was smiling widely, nose wrinkling the way it did, and for a moment Finn was frozen. There were a lot of things he liked about Rey, but the way her nose wrinkled right at the top must have been one of his favourite things.

“I- I mean- Yes.” He stammered, handing her a sandwich, before finding his words properly. “I didn’t know this would be a picnic.”

Rey shrugged at that, mouth full, cheeks puffed, then shook her head. “Neither did I.”

As he unwrapped his own sandwich, the grass rustled around them, and he froze. He knew something had been following them, and he mentally cursed himself for not being more aware, before sitting down. What if it was the First Order, what if it was Kylo Ren, what if it was-

The grass rustled again, and a small creature sprang out at them, its triangular ears perked up, brazenly stepping forward to sniff at Finn’s sandwich, its flat face almost touching the food.

“Hey, hey, hey!” He pulled away his sandwich, holding it up higher, and the creature just climbed up on his lap, standing up on its back legs to get closer, short bushy tail brushing against his legs, while Rey just giggled, her own sandwich temporarily forgotten.

“No, get off, get-” 

Not that that deterred the creature, and as Rey reached for it, Finn dropped the arm holding the sandwich, horrified. What if it attacked, what if it was poisonous?

“You don’t know if-”

Too late.

The creature was in Rey’s arms, and Finn’s sandwich in the creature’s mouth.

It seemed to be perfectly fine with that, not looking up from its prey as Rey stroked its sand coloured fur.

“It’s just a tooka. I think.”

Rey grinned at Finn, her own sandwich still safe in one hand while the other petted the tooka, which was busy making short work of Finn’s sandwich.

“Jakku had them too,” she tilted her head to look at the tooka, “only they looked slightly different. Bigger ears. Bigger in general. I think this one must be a kitten.”

She scratched it behind an ear, and it looked up for a moment, making a satisfied rumbling sound, before turning its flat face to the food again.

“They’re friendly, mostly.”

Finn let out a sigh, watching his sandwich disappear in the cat’s large mouth.

“Well. I guess that’s not terrible then.”

Good thing he packed them more than one sandwich each.


End file.
